Jiddat al-Harasis and Kuria Muria Islands

Map of the Month: Jiddat al Harasis; Kuria Muria Islands
Map boundaries: 10 to 20 degrees North; 56 to 64 degrees East
Country: Oman (Al Wusta and Dhofar regions)

Overview
The majority of this map area encompasses the tropical waters of the Arabian Sea. In the south part of the map is the triple junction of the Arabian, Indian, and Somali Plates. However, the small area of land includes the Jiddat al Harasis, a flat limestone plateau with karst features, and the Kuria Muria Islands, offshore islands noted for seabird nesting. Between Jiddat al-Harasis and the ocean is the 100-meter Al-Huqf escarpment and the 300-m in height Janabah Hills (UNEP, 2008). The coastal fog deserts are the notable ecological feature. Formed by cool offshore waters, dense seasonal fogs and dews support a unique desert ecosystem with endemic flora. The fog reaches far inland and supports an open acacia woodland. Further inland are the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula.

World Wildlife Fund Terrestrial Ecoregions

Deserts and Xeric Shrublands
Afrotropic Biome
AT 1302, Arabian Peninsula Coastal Fog Desert. Luxurient vegetation and dense woodland dominated by Acacia and Prosopis supported by coastal fogs. The regional endemic tree Anogeissus is found on seaward facing slopes. At higher elevations, Olea, Dodonaca, and Carissa thickets are found. Found in Al Wusta and Dhofar.

Palearctic Biome
PA 1303, Arabian Desert and East Sahero-Arabian Xeric Shrublands. This includes a small area of the map northwest of Hayma in the Al Wusta region. This sparsely vegetated desert contains Calligonum, Conrnulaca, and Cyperus species.
PA 1325, Red Sea Nubo-Sindian tropical desert and semi-desert. This includes the central plains of the Jiddat al Harasis. Vegetation consists of scattered trees and shrubs such as Acacia and Prosopis, with grass noted after a rain. Heavy fogs and dews provide supplemental moisture up to 120 km inland. Found in Al Wusta region.

Marine Ecoregions of the World (Spalding et al., 2007)
Western Indo-Pacific Realm, Somali/Arabian Province
92. Western Arabian Sea. Includes continental shelf area shown on map

Freshwater Ecoregions of the World (Abel et al., 2008)
Europe and Middle East Region
Xeric freshwaters and closed basins
439. Southwestern Arabian Coast
440. Arabian Interior

Places of interest:
Ad Duqm. A shallow sandy bay with lagoons and tidal flats, containing important sites for wintering waterbirds.
Arabian Oryx Sanctuary. Established to protect the oryx; also noted for Houbara bustard and Arabian gazelle (Birdlife International, 2008; UNEP, 2008). Located in ecoregion PA 1325 and AT 1302.
Hamar an Nafur. A small isolated island, home of wintering Socotra cormorant and red-billed tropicbird (Birdlife International, 2008). Ecoregion AT 1302.
Al Hallaniyah. A massive limestone cliff 500 m high on the northeast coast of the Kuria Muria Islands. Important seabird and turtle nesting sites are found on all four islands. Birds of note include red-billed tropicbird, Audubon’s shearwater, masked booby, and Socotra cormorant (Birdlife International, 2008). Ecoregion AT 1302.
Khawr Dhirif. A lagoon noted for Ferruginous duck and Saunders tern (Birdlife International, 2008). Ecoregion AT 1302.
Khawr Ghawi. A tidal inlet noted for shorebirds and the western reef-egret (Birdlife International, 2008). Ecoregion AT 1302.

References:
Abell, Robin and 27 others. 2008. Freshwater Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Biogeographic Units for Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation. Bioscience 58:403-414.
BirdLife International. 2008. BirdLife’s Online World Bird Database. Accessed 29/12/2008 at http://www.birdlife.org/
Olson, David M., et al., 2001. Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Life on Earth. BioScience 51:933-938.
Spalding, Mark D. and 14 others. 2007. Marine Ecoregions of the World: A Bioregionalization of Coastal and Shelf Areas. Bioscience 57:573-583.
United Nations Environment Programme—World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP). 2008. Arabian Oryx Sanctuary, Oman. Langdon D. Clough, topic editor. IN Encyclopedia of Earth, Cutler J. Cleveland, ed. Washington, DC: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment. Retrieved April 28, 2009. http://www.eoearth.org/.